Diesel News: EPA; Turba Tom YouTube; Navistar

DW NEWS

News Of The Month

Tragic Crash At RTDS 9

It’s been a Rough year for motorsports across the board, but perhaps the most tragic news of 2022 occurred at Rocky Top Diesel Shootout recently. For reasons yet to be officially determined, YouTube sensation, U.C.C. competitor, and privateer drag racer Turba Tom Borrell went off the end of the track and lost his life. For fellow racers, spectators, and fans of Tom’s around the world, the news of his passing hit the diesel world like a ton of bricks. As a result of the tragedy, Crossville Dragway and Outlaw Diesel Super Series officials canceled the remainder of the event.

Source: https://www.outlawdieselss.com/

Highlights

Turba Tom’s Legacy

Turba Tom’s presence in the diesel industry might’ve been brief, but over the course of the past five years, he’s inspired hundreds, if not thousands, of prospective diesel enthusiasts to dive into their own projects. At the same time, he brought viewers of his YouTube channel along for the entirety of what would become a low-5-second, 2,000hp fourth-gen Ram built in a simple, 2-car garage. A can-do attitude, a willingness to admit mistakes and learn from them, and the kind of determination that allows a privateer to compete against the biggest names in the industry earned Tom an immeasurable amount of street-cred in the diesel game. His racing journey and his contributions to the diesel world will never be forgotten.

Source: https://www.youtube.com/c/TurbaTom/

Emissions

CARB To Develop Advanced Clean Fleets (ACF)

In 2020, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) adopted the Advanced Clean Trucks regulation, which imposes zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) sale mandates for manufacturers of medium and heavy-duty vehicles. In the rule, truck manufacturers will have to gradually transition from diesel to ZEV, beginning in 2024. By 2045 every new truck sold in California is to be zero emission. Now, it’s time for CARB to work out all the details required to achieve its goals. At the present time, a high priority has been placed on how to electrify fleets, federal fleets, and state and local government fleets.

Source: https://dieselnet.com/

NEWS

EV Discrimination?

With signs like these showing up at parking garages around the country, one has to wonder if electric vehicles will be unwelcome in certain parking facilities going forward. Do EVs present a viable public safety risk? Given the catastrophic and almost unquenchable nature of a battery fire, banning EVs from parking garages doesn’t seem all that implausible. After all, fire departments would have their work cut out for them trying to access a battery fire several floors up, and in a facility with ceilings well under seven feet in height.

OEM News

Navistar’s New S13 Integrated Powertrain

Developed over the course of five years in conjunction with members of the Traton Group, Navistar has introduced what it believes will be one of the most efficient commercial heavy-duty powertrain packages in North America. The company’s S13 engine, T14 transmission, and ‘dual stage’ after-treatment emissions system are said to be the lightest powertrain on the market. Pitted against the company’s current powertrain offering, the S13 Integrated Powertrain can offer up to a 15-percent gain in fuel efficiency. Navistar’s inline-six displaces 12.7L, features a 23:1 compression ratio, utilizes a fixed geometry turbo, an 1,800 bar (26,000 psi) common-rail system, and boasts a B10 life of 1.2 million miles. A dual-stage, dual-dosing SCR catalyst system and uncooled EGR are used to curb NOx.

Source: https://dieselnet.com/

Emissions

New Jersey Pursuing Deleted Diesel Owners

Government overreach or noble effort to clean up our air? No matter what you think, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is actively pursuing at least one diesel owner who attempted to sell a deleted ’08 Cummins on Facebook Marketplace. Per a report from theDrive.com, the ’08 Ram 2500 in question was posted for sale online, where the ad made mention of the truck’s being DPF and EGR deleted. The seller soon received a letter from the New Jersey DEP stating that the truck was illegal to operate on public roadways and that it would have to be returned to factory condition. It’s proof that individual diesel owners can and will be targeted—whether or not the owner even knows if his or her vehicle has had its emissions system tampered with or removed.

Source: https://www.thedrive.com/

Emissions

Flo-Pro Fined $1.6 Million

Alberta, Canada-based Flo-Pro Performance Exhaust has settled with the Environmental Protection Agency to the tune of $1.6 million for violating the Clean Air Act. Part of the settlement includes an agreement to cease selling devices that delete or disable diesel vehicle emissions control systems. EPA estimates that, prior to the launch of its 2018 investigation, Flo-Pro sold more than 100,000 aftermarket defeat devices annually in the United States. In early 2019, Flo-Pro halted sales of said devices in the U.S. in an effort to resolve the matter. Thunder Diesel, a distributor located in Mountain Home, Arkansas, shut down all of its automotive operations as a result. Contrary to what some have heard, Flo-Pro is still very much in business, albeit with a different business model, and should continue on in the industry for the foreseeable future.

Source: https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/

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